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365days365movies · 4 years ago

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May 1, 2021: The Prestige (2006) (Recap: Part One)

What’s that old Arthur C. Clarke quote again?

Not that one, although that’s...that’s fantastic, and I need to know more context to that conversation. But no, no, not that. The other one.

Not that one, although that’s...horrifying. Let me explain something first, then. Clarke was the author of the classic science-fiction novel 2001: A Space Odyssey, which definitely didn’t go on to become one of the most widely regarded films of all time. Anyway, he was a big-shot in science fiction, and was even knighted for his prominence in pop culture in the UK and across the world.

Fellow famous sci-fi author Isaac Asimov is well known for three rules of robotics, but Clarke has three rules of his own. A futurist, his laws describe conjecture about scientific development in the future of out societies. Those laws are:

When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong.

The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

Magic, huh?

God, I love Weird Al. Anyway, as a child of the ‘90s, I am well-acquainted with the boom of stage magicians that appeared during that time, and during the early 2000s. David Copperfield made the Statue of Liberty disappear, David Blaine coughed up a live frog, Criss Angel freaked minds; lot of stuff back then.

And yet, despite other recent magicians like Penn and Teller or Dynamo, the greatest age of stage magic isn’t even CLOSE to the 90′s. No, no, to really see magic in its heyday, we need to go back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, to the days of the stage illusionist.

Obviously, the first person that comes to mind is Harry Houdini, a man whose feats have lasted the test of time, and may have led to his death. Not only did he get buried alive, not only did he escape from a straitjacket in chains underwater, NOT ONLY did he hold his breath inside a water-filled milk can inside of a wooden chest repeatedly for FOUR YEARS, but he was also the greatest enemy of spiritualists and mediums everywhere!

Yeah, despite being a stage magician, Houdini was OBSESSED with exposing those who claimed to be actually supernatural. After all, as a showman, he was interesting in exposing tricks that were meant to defraud the innocent public. Dude was awesome, is what I’m saying. He died from a burst appendix, which miiiiight have been caused by a student who punched him in the stomach after asking if he was actually resistant to abdominal damage. Yeah, not a great death. And he wasn’t the only illusionist to die of tragic circumstances, but that’s a discussion for another day. Because of this is sci-fi month...why am I talking about magic? Well...imagine a lighter.

Now image that you went back 5,000 years, to any civilization, and showed them a lighter. The ability to create fire with seemingly nothing but your bare hands? You’re basically a wizard! Fire from no visible fuel? TEACH ME YOUR WAYS, O SORCERER OF THE FLAME!!! And that’s just a goddamn lighter.

What about a light bulb? Light from energy you’ve harnessed from metals and from the air itself? Jujube! A camera? With the ability to capture a moment in time in the form of a tangible image? WITCHCRAFT!!! A smartphone? A FUCKING SMARTPHONE???

And so, in celebration of the blurring of magic and science...why not start this month with an unconventional form of science fiction, huh? Something that blurs magic and science in a way that’s indistinguishable. And so, I can FINALLY watch a movie that I’ve wanted to watch for YEARS!

I am so excited, and this is a hell of a way to kick off the month! Why this? Well, I’ll explain that later. But for now...LET’S DO THIS.

SPOILER ALERT!!!

Recap (1/2)

There are three acts of magic.

First is “the pledge”, where the magician shows something normal. Then, there’s “the turn”, which is when the ordinary becomes extraordinary. And finally, there’s the act of bringing the show full-circle; bringing back a disappeared object, in a new way and with a new technique. That final act, the showmanship, the establishment of the mystery, is called “the prestige”.

So is told to us by John Cutter (Michael Caine), keeper of canaries and stage engineer to magicians, via narration abut magic. Intercut with that narration, and with a disappearing canary trick, is the presentation of an act being performed by Robert Angier (Hugh Jackman). In it, he turns on a machine using electricity, with lightning bolts flying freely. He steps inside of it, and disappears.

Meanwhile, coming from the audience, a man pretends to be part of the act, and goes backstage and underneath the machine. There, he witnesses Angier fall through a trap door into a water tank, unable to get out, panicking and drowning. Which is just super fun to watch, lemme tell you! And that is where the story starts.

The man from the audience was Alfred Borden (Christian Bale), who is quickly put on trial for the murder of Angier. A rival of his during the 1890s and early 1900s, Borden is sent to jail, and sent to death by hanging. This is as his young daughter watches on. In court, Alfred testifies against Bruce Wayne on how he murdered Wolverine, because this is all I could think of the entire time. Anyway, the court asks for more details on the trick that killed Angier, called “the Transported Man”. He refuses to divulge it publicly, but agrees to tell it to one of the judges in secret.

In prison, Borden’s visited by a representative of a wealthy collector of items, Lord Caldlow. He asks if he will sell him his most prominent trick, the “Transported Man”. But Borden also refuses, as it’s HIS trick. Still, in response, the man gives Borden a journal of Angier’s’, and asks him to think about selling the secret. And from there: flashback!

Angier is on a train, heading to Colorado Springs, where he’s surprised to see that the whole town has electricity. His plan is to go up the mountain, which is closed for scientific experimentation. Which isn’t ominous at all! That completely banal revelation is followed by a walk up the mountain in the fog, past a fence that says no trespassing and LITERAL WARNING SIGNS.

There, he’s greeted by Alley (Andy Serkis), the assistant of the estate’s owner. Apparently, said owner made a machine for Borden, and Angier wants to learn the secrets. Another flashback, and we learn that Borden and Angier, rival magicians now, met a long time ago at the show of another magician, both volunteering to tie up the female assistant, Julia (Piper Perabo). Which would be creepy out of context, and then is creepy IN context when Angier kisses her thigh. Ew.

Anyway, they drop her into a tank, with a pretty stereotypical trick. After the show, we also learn that these two men are actually working for the magician, Milton (Ricky Jay), which makes that thigh kiss less creepy. Talking to Cutter and Julia, Borden mocks Milton’s trick, noting that the old magician won’t even try something like a bullet catch. Cutter mocks this idea, and asks if Borden has any better ideas. It’s around this time that Cutter suggests seeing Chung Ling Soo. Huh. I won’t say anything about that until later.

Or right now! And, uh...oh shit, this is extraordinarily awkward. Here’s the thing: this is NOT Chung Ling Soo. I know this for two reasons. One, Soo didn’t really pretend to be crippled, as Borden and Angier suggest. Wasn’t really his bag. But something that IS interesting about the guy is how he died! BULLET CATCH TRICK!! Yup! He tried the bullet catch trick, and he died when the bullet actually fired at him! Yeah, awkward.

And you know what else is awkward, and really different from this story? Chung Ling Soo was...not Chinese. Even a little bit. His real name was William Ellsworth Robinson, he married his assistant, cheated on her with another assistant, never divorced and still married his new assistant illegally, etc. He was an interesting guy. Ignoring, y’know, the whole disgustingly shitty yellow-face thing. Different times, unfortunately.

Borden’s frustration with an act he considers boring and obsolete erupts during one of Milton’s shows, where we see him KILL A BIRD, FUCK ME MAN. Yeah, I get it, Borden, this is terrible! This coincides with meeting a young woman and her nephew, who is also upset to see a bird die in front of him. The woman is Sarah (Rebecca Hall), and the two start a romance. Meanwhile, the romance between Angier and Julia is a straight-up marriage, making that thigh kiss fare more understandable. And, the two are about to have a baby, to both of their delight! Nothing bad will happen now!

We flash forward to the future, where Cutter is showing the judge what’s what with the device. He claims that a wizard built it, and that the machine can actually do what magicians have only pretended to do for years. They also look at a tank, and Cutter reveals that the tank has a terrible history, especially for the two magicians.

Flashback again, to a night of yet another show. That night, Milton and the group go through with their trick, as per usual. However, Borden decides to make it a little tougher and more exciting by tying a different knot this time. And unfortunately...Julia can’t untie it. They try to get her out in time, but alas...it’s too late.

Julia dies, and Angier blames Borden, who isn’t even entirely sure if he tied the knot that killed Julia...allegedly. Not a big fan of Borden right now. The act is over, and Borden decides to split off and do his own act, calling himself “the Professor”. Now having a child of his own with Sarah, he decides to do a bullet trick, with the help of new stage engineer, Fallon. But this is a tricky trick to perform. And the understandable mental breakdown of Angier causes its own problems.

See, during one of Borden’s shows (which is going TERRIBLY), a disguised Angiers shows up and loads a REAL bullet into the gun for the trick, and BLOWS OFF TWO OF HIS FINGERS FUCK ME!!! Borden’s not exactly happy about this, but he recovers quickly. Shortly after, Cutter finds Angier at a bar, and offers him the opportunity to make a new show of his own. Reluctantly, he accepts, and takes up the moniker “the Great Danton”, a name that his late wife suggested.

With a new bird/cage trick, one that lets the bird LIVE (THANK YOU), they’re almost set. But they also add a new assistant, in the form of...Black Widow. I mean, sorry, Olivia Wenscombe (Scarlett Johansson). Yeah, um...Wolver, Alfred Pennyworth, and Black Widow are working together in competition against Batman. Also, Gollum is in the movie, too. God, what’s next, David Bowie?

Anyway, the show is on once again, and Angier asks for some volunteers in the audience. But, uh oh! One of them is Borden in disguise, and he sabotages the trick in front of EVERYBODY, breaking an audience member’s fingers, and killing the bird, completely fucking up Angier’s career, in revenge for his fingers. Oh, also, MOTHERFUCKER YOU KILLED HIS WIFE (maybe)!!! Doesn’t justify Angier shooting off your fingers, but you could’ve just let bygones be! No wonder you’re rivals in the future! Batman’s a dick (which, given Christian Bale, isn’t that surprising).

Well, since his trick, Angier’s fucked. They’re kicked out of the theater, and in need of a new act. Cutter suggests that Angier goes to the upcoming science exposition for ideas. And yes...that’s where the science fiction angle starts in. See, like Clarke said, any science that’s sophisticated enough LOOKS like magic to audiences who don’t understand it. And Borden has the same idea, as he also heads to the expo.

It’s there that a presentation of a massive electrical generator is being held, with the machine having been invented by...Nicola Tesla! YO!

I don’t think I need to tell anybody about Tesla at this point, but he was a brilliant physicist and inventor from the early 1900s. His legendary Current War with Thomas Alva Edison for the current to be used by the United States (Tesla’s DC vs. Edison’s AC) is the stuff of science legend...and is a conflict that the far less charismatic Tesla lost. Still, his mastery of electricity (such as the above Tesla coil) is remembered today. If you want to go sightseeing, check out New York! In Niagara Falls, he’s got a massive statue overlooking the falls; and in Bryant Park in NYC, you can sit on the bench where he fed his beloved pigeons. Yeah, he loved pigeons, which I respect.

Anyway, the expo’s shut down due to presumed danger of the exhibit, possibly spurred on by Thomas Edison and his PR team. Which is pretty accurate, not gonna lie. Still, the experiment interests both Angier and Borden. Still, Angier doesn’t do much with this information. Right now, anyway.

Flash forward to Angier in Colorado Springs, and a group of men from Edison’s employ are there for some reason. But undeterred, Angier heads back to Tesla’s lab, where Alley shows him a gorgeous sight: lightbulbs dotting a field, making a gorgeous grid of light. He reveals that the source of the electricity is 15 miles away, as a testament to Tesla’s scientific genius. Stellar.

A great place to pause. See you in Part Two of this Recap!

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chaoticneutralwriter · 4 years ago

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Fourth Act: Kindness

Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. - Galatians 6:2

guardian demon!jimin x reader

genre: fluff, romance, supernatural, angst, comedy, slow-burn

word count: 8.9k

Related works: see Masterlist under guardian demon!jimin

Continuation of Third Act: Patience

A/N: WELL WELL WELL, we’ve found ourselves four acts deep and only three more to go. That much closer for our favourite demon boy to completing his goal right? 🤐🤐 Sorry it took so long as per usual T.T a lot has been going on but nevertheless, I’m still so grateful to all of your patience and love for the series so far! I hope you enjoy this chapter too! Time to ramp things up again after this LOL Oh! Also to note, the switch between names is intentional (you’ll see what I mean). As always, I hope you’re all taking care of yourself.

@cherryjiminiee @kokobaekkie @breathebangtan @itsadoozie @thatshylatina @chiminieboi @azulamakesmeblank @sectumsemptae @awkwardwookie @aduky @poisonseashell @shortannoyingginger @caramelmac-chiato @sana-b @jiminstinct @beautifulparisiangirl @taelieninvader @ggukjitaejin @xakemi-chiix @vantaenims @atulipandarose

When you had woken up the next day, you were definitely a lot more relaxed, like the initial fear of having to confront the person who makes your body react involuntarily in funny ways has worn off. You’d laid in bed, taking the time to reflect on last night’s conversation and came to the conclusion that, no matter how short it was, you could’ve done worse. Granted, you had the safety net of talking to Jimin only through text message but baby steps! You just need to do a little readjusting, rearrange the new cards you’ve been dealt with so to speak. Even though you see your guardian demon in a more romantic way now, the last thing you wanted was for it to get out of control and potentially ruin the friendship you have with him.

You’d say you had a pretty good handle on that because much like last night, Jimin continues to text you every so other day. Most of the time, he asks about your well-being, of which you reply with your usual casualness (well, not like much goes on anyways). Then there are times where you and him have actual conversations. You don’t know how they start but whenever they do, it’s like coming home from a long day at work to discover that there was actually a tub of your favourite ice cream in the freezer all along — something to brighten the dull monotony of your life, a small sweetness for you to enjoy. You easily get lost in talking with him; the playful banter, the gibes, the jokes, even when the topics are meaningless, you find yourself grinning and giggling until your cheeks ache. Everything was still so natural and you’re proud to say, you’ve only slipped up twice! (The first time it was about his hair colour and you had mentioned black is probably your favourite look on him, the second was when you had mindlessly asked if he was ever going to stop by any time soon to visit because well—! It’s been a while right? Not like you miss him…that much.)

“Whatchu grinning at?”

The voice calling out to you makes you abruptly shoot your head up from being buried in your phone, eyes meeting Jaehee’s from across the table. She’s got a mischievous twinkle in her eyes and a slight quirk to her eyebrows, that’s enough for you to know that she’s caught you red-handed in one of your giddier moments. Cheeks flushing, you clear your throat and swiftly send a text back before placing the phone down on the table again, screen blackened to hide from the curious gaze prodding at you.

“Just…A meme my friends sent me…” You lie, stuffing a spoonful of fried rice into your mouth. Jaehee lets out a huff at your answer, shoulders sagging and an unimpressed look taking over her face in replacement.

“Uh huh? Just a meme?” Jaehee sounds wholly unconvinced, punctuated when she also adds, “You’re not doing the face that goes with it.”

“What face?”

“The one where you go like this.”

She demonstrates by squishing back her neck until there’s a slight double chin and then curls her lips into a dopey looking smile while staring down at her own phone. The sight makes you snort unattractively, followed by a short guffaw that has you covering your mouth. Jaehee joins in laughing with you.

“I thought that’s the face I always make no matter what I’m looking at.” You defend.

“Nah, you practically had heart eyes just now, and you got like this Disney princess smile on.” Jaehee counters, leaning her elbows onto the table. “So, is it Julien or is it Julien?”

“What makes you so confident it’s Julien?” You ask with an incredulous laugh.

“So it’s not Julien? Cuz if it’s not I would actually be very disappointed.”

That earns a light scoff from you, like as if you even have enough interest to pursue someone else, let alone the capabilities to try to reel them in, “Well, no, as if—“

“So Julien—“

“Jaehee!” You exclaim, feeling particularly bashful at being called out so suddenly — since when did you have a look when you’re texting someone? Does it show that much? “Why, what would you say if it was him?”

Your roommate grins slyly in a very Cheshire Cat manner and you swear she’s radiating an aura of excitement, wiggling in her seat as she asks, “Are you guys finally a thing?”

Your eyebrows furrow, almost in disbelief; at what you’re not even sure yourself but it leaves you feeling a little crestfallen. “I— no we’re not really a thing. I mean….” You cut yourself off, not sure where you want to go with this or if you’re even ready to have that talk yet so you sigh out, “It’s complicated.”

It might sound like a dumb reason to others, but you’d rather not involve your most trusted friend into something you’re still unsure about. You don’t want to make a mountain out of a molehill — get her invested in your boy troubles when she’s probably dealing with much more important life problems. At the admission, Jaehee’s playful grin slips and she tilts her head, puzzled. “Oh, really? I thought you guys were since….”

She trails off but you don’t need her to finish to know what she was implying. You let out a sigh again, shrugging and going back to spooning more rice on your plate in an attempt to brush it off.

“I don’t know…. I just— I’m still trying to work it out I guess.”

Jaehee watches you silently for a moment, taking in your dampened mood with concern before she settles back into her seat. “Damn, well if you need someone to vent then I’m here for you.” Pausing, she adds on with a small smile, “You know I’m always rooting for you.”

You can’t help but smile in return at her unwavering support. “Thanks Jaehee.”

Dinner passes on in companionable silence. Your years of friendship and living together have proven that you’re both in tune with each other; knowing and respecting each other’s boundaries as well as readily give support without having to say anything. It’s something you’re grateful for when it comes to Jaehee and is especially comforting because at least you know that the only pressure you’d be feeling is from yourself.

And that’s how you find yourself, staring aimlessly at your ceiling while lying in bed, deep in thought. The conversation with Jaehee, although it was brief, brought to light that, contrary to your beliefs, you’ve actually sunken yourself deeper into the rabbit hole. You’re no longer in that safe zone where if worse comes to worse, you’d be able to handle swallowing your feelings for your guardian demon and, maybe after a few days of sulking, would be able to accept that it was never meant to be. It’d hurt but you think it would at least hurt less; you’d be able to cope with it.

But before you realized it, your feelings have only grown and solidified from all the times you’ve texted that they have nowhere to go but out. You actually think if Jimin were to tell you he’s leaving the next day right now, you would have a bit of a mental and emotional breakdown.

So much for having a handle on things.

You bring your hands up to rub your face, letting out a little groan to yourself. As if sensing your distress, your phone comes to life with a buzz and a chime. It would’ve been a welcoming distraction had it not been a message from the very person who’s already occupying a huge chunk of your thoughts. So does it mean that you’re going to ignore it in favour of trying to get some peace?

“Did you have a good dinner?”

You’re typing out a response and hitting send because who were you kidding?

“I did! Good ol’ fried rice :)”

“…was it one of those days?”

“Hey! I enjoy eating fried rice once in a while >:( AND fyi, I had a sunny-side up egg on top so it’s not all as bad as it sounds.”

“Oh, how fancy of you~ ��

(You roll your eyes as if he's saying it right in front of you).

“Okay chill out Mr. Bougie, I don’t need your judgment here.

I’m a simple woman.

I will eat anything as long as it’s edible.”

“Easy to please huh?

I quite like to see that for myself.”

You had to put your phone down for a hot second because you’re short circuiting. Why did your thoughts go that way? Did you ask for it to go that way? On second thought, maybe it’s you who needs to chill out.

A buzz catches your attention again and against your frantically beating heart and heated face, you go to check the message.  

“Are you in bed now?” 

You actually take a deep breath in and release it, trying to get your nerves under control but even so, the tips of your fingers still feel too jittery as you type.

“Yeah, just getting comfortable.”

“Good, you should get some sleep.

It worries me sometimes how late you stay up.

Makes me think you’re secretly a vampire or something.”

A snort leaves you and you shake your head at his accusations as you reply back almost instantly.

“I can’t help if I’m a night owl okay? And what would you do if I was a vampire? :O”

“Hmm….

Do you really want to know the answer to that?”

Maybe it’s because you’re so lost in conversations with him that something takes over, suddenly having the urge to get a rile out of him like the way he’s so good at doing with you that before you know it, you’re goading him on.

“Why? Would you nail me with a stake?”

Exhilaration courses through you, heart beat pounding against your chest like a beating drum as you wait. To your surprise, there’s a lull in the time he responds and it makes you preen a little, thinking for once you’ve managed to push his buttons instead of it being the other way around. It makes you anticipate his answer even more. Finally after a few minutes, a new text pops up. The words make you choke on air and you barely manage to smother the sounds of your loud coughs.

“I’d do more than just nail you with a stake darling.”

Once you’ve regained your breath, your face is absolutely on fire and your mind reeling. How do you even respond to that? Actually, you don’t even think you can — you’re here trying to one up a demon in his own game and all it got you was your foot in your mouth. You shouldn’t have expected anything less. As you’re panicking about where to even begin trying to play this entire thing off, a new message comes through.

“Like telling you that you should go to sleep or else you’ll actually start looking like the undead.

Sweet dreams, cherub. I’ll talk to you some other time.”

You wish him a good night in return, still very much in a daze at what just happened. Your hand flops back against your mattress and you just… lay there; no thoughts, head empty. Well, maybe one thought.

You really got it bad for him.

The streets of downtown are busy for a weekday, bustling with people who have places to go and others to see but considering the time, it’s not at all surprising. It’s approximately half past twelve in the afternoon, the general time where many who work in the office would be taking their lunches and with the convenience of the downtown area, many prefer to simply eat out. Whether it’s grabbing a quick bite or sitting down and enjoying a full service in the company of their co-workers, there’s a place that caters to everyone’s needs. It’s a time where everyone is eager to be relieved from their busy schedules and being cooped up in a cubicle for five hours straight before having to go back and push through the remaining hours of their workday.

It’s a very clockwork thing, something Jaehee knows all too well because she’s among the masses that’s a part of it yet as she watches her peers from her window seat in the cafe, she feels like the stranger looking from the outside in.

Almost three years ago, Jaehee had been like any other graduate fresh out of college; bright-eyed and ready to start their life as an ‘adult’ which meant getting a ‘real’ job. She had been so determined, vowed that gone were the days of being stuck with a minimum wage and she’s finally going to put her schooling to use. Of course, it wasn’t easy, half of the battle was just the interviews alone but over time, they start to affect her (as any normal person who’s been rejected over twenty times would, and in the form of ghosting no less).

So naturally when she had gone into that interview for a junior position in a rather small business, expecting no less only to get an offer? That was the olive branch Jaehee had been searching for in a metaphorical sea of pine trees. She accepted it without any further questions asked, the prospect of her first ‘real’ job overruling any doubts she would have had. A rookie mistake on her part, one that only really started to show once she was already in too deep.

At first, it was the small things; things that might’ve gotten under her skin at the time but very easily, Jaehee could push aside without thinking much of it again. After all, not like she expects this place to be perfect right off the bat. As long as they upheld proper HR codes, Jaehee didn’t mind that this was her humble beginnings. She had the mindset to work hard at her job, build her experience and then if things didn’t work out here, she’ll find somewhere else. So that’s what she did, she rolled with the punches every time and before she knew it, a year had passed.

But as time went on, more and more things came up; how the jobs she’s been tasked to hire candidates for always end up having little to no benefits in the long run, how because of that, they never stay for more than half a month at a time, how the inappropriate behaviour of some employees fly under the radar because it’s considered ‘not serious enough’ to be addressed, and how despite having worked for the company for years, her co-worker was never given a single pay raise no matter how well she did her job. It all made her uneasy.

Soon, telling herself to stick it out for just another year became harder that it quickly changed to just another month until here she is now, barely scraping it to three years and reduced to holding onto the single thread that’s still keeping her here — money, and even that is starting to wear thin.

As much as she hated to admit it, Jaehee has found herself trapped between a rock and hard place and she’s at a complete lost on what to do. The heavy sigh she releases felt more like it tore through her entire being, head slumping against the glass; maybe she should’ve hit up a bar rather than a cafe because she really could use a drink right now, happy hour times be damned.

Just as Jaehee considers going through with the idea, eyes scanning across the street to see if there were actually any bars or pubs close by, her gaze lands on an unexpected figure. At first, she didn’t think it was him, already hard to tell because of the black surgical mask he wore covering the lower half of his face while a pair of shades cover his eyes but the longer she watched him, the more sure she was; if there was one thing that stuck with Jaehee amongst the few times she’s met him, it was that he had an aura — he was one of those people you just knew looked attractive even from behind, which makes it all the more curious for Jaehee to see him about to walk into the same cafe she’s currently sitting in.

She watches as he comes to stand in the queue, head bowed and more focused on the phone in his hand while the other was stuffed into the pocket of his fitted dark wash jeans. Such an understated gesture but already out of the corner of Jaehee’s eye, she catches some customers looking his way with interest. The sight makes her stifle her chuckle; thoroughly amused at seeing what she had deducted earlier first hand. It’s only after he turns to head towards the self-serving counter, a medium sized coffee cup in his hand, does Jaehee think there might be a chance he’ll notice her and as if feeling a particularly steady pair of eyes on him, she sees his chin raise slightly more towards her direction.

So, with a slight wave of her hand and a smile, Jaehee makes herself known officially to the taller male, his name slipping out in a bright greeting, “Julien!”

She sees him momentarily pause, then tilt his head before he nods in acknowledgement, casually grabbing a sleeve and a lid for his cup. Once he does, he begins to stride toward Jaehee’s table, stopping short just beside the unoccupied seat across from her.

“Didn’t expect to run into you here.” He says in a light drawl as he pulls down his mask to sip at his coffee. What luck.

“I found this place to have the best coffee around my office.”

“Oh, so you work around here?” Julien sounds genuinely surprised, even takes a brief glance out onto the streets before seemingly coming to accept that possibility. “On lunch then?”

Jaehee can’t help the wry smile that makes its way onto her lightly tinted lips, shoulders heaving and the reply she gives leaves her in the form of a tired sigh. “Yeah….For now.”

At this close distance now, Jaehee can see Julien’s eyes faintly through the tinted colours of his shades, how they seem to observe her over the white rim of the coffee cup he has gingerly grazing his slightly parted plump lips, mid-drink.

One sweep of her form tells all he needs to know, so used to picking up the signs of a troubled human — a skill he’s honed over the many years of living to easier prey and exploit the vulnerable into falling victim to his dark temptations. But he’s not here to lead her astray (he thinks he’d have his head chopped off before that, courtesy of one particular gremlin he knew and adore). Besides that, he may or may not have a favour to ask of Jaehee.

“Well, you sure sound eager to get back to work.” He chuckles sarcastically. Jaehee lets out a quiet huff of air through her nose, crossing her arms as she further slumps into her seat.

“I have yet to honestly meet a person who actually likes going to work.” She mumbles sardonically, making the corner of his mouth twitch. Julien takes the opportunity to slide into the seat finally, tilting his head inquisitively in a way that reminds Jaehee of a puppy….or a cat…. Puppy-cat.

“You sound especially loathsome to go back.” Julien starts casually, placing his coffee cup down in front of him and after tapping his ring clad fingers against it, he continues with a sly smirk, “Smells like tea to me.”

Jaehee laughs, shaking her head as she also takes the time to sip more from her own cup. “Well, no! I mean…” Her voice trails off and her smile falters a little, like the gravity of the situation is settling in on her and there’s really no hope in trying to deflect with humour. Jimin waits patiently, watching the conflicting emotions flit through Jaehee’s expressions and to coax her into deluging more on what’s been bothering her, he smiles reassuringly.

“I’m all ears.”

She pauses to regard him for a moment and seeing his openly friendliness makes the last of her resolve crumble. How lucky you are that you managed to snag a catch like Julien; now she swears if you two don’t end up together then maybe romance is actually dead.

Pulling out from her thoughts, Jaehee brushes aside some loose strands of hair before she rests her chin in her hand, looking out the window to see a group of office workers enjoying the patio weather in the restaurant across the street, throwing their head back in boisterous laughter. She feels envious. With one last sigh, she speaks.

“Work…has been getting unbearable, to say the least and I don’t know how much more I can take.”

Julien hums. “Overbearing manager?”

“It’s everything really; most of the people there, the environment, the job itself…. It all just piled up and now every time I go to work it’s soul draining. I feel so anxious and…uncomfortable. All the time.”

“Have you…tried bringing those issues up with your reporting manager?”

Another heavy sigh leaves Jaehee, shaking her head. “I tried once or twice but they either brush it off or do the bare minimum to fix it. It doesn’t last long usually.”

Julien leans back against his chair, languidly folding his legs so that his ankle rests on the top of one knee. It makes for an impressive view of his insane body proportions that Jaehee still can’t believe can exist on a person; the long sleeve, dark grey and black knit tee is half tucked into his pants, giving a peek of his cinched waistline while legs that seem to extend endlessly, streamlined to a pair of black Chelsea boots. She swears Julien isn’t the tallest male she’s encountered (her own boyfriend Jason might actually be a head taller than he is) but somehow, sitting like this, you would think this man is actually seventy percent legs.

“Why don’t you quit then? You don’t sound happy being there anyways.”

His blunt suggestion takes her aback that for a moment she thinks he’s joking but he remains unfazed, completely serious. It’s a pretty obvious thing to do Jimin thinks, yet Jaehee is here looking at him as if he just told her to launch herself into space to escape from her problems. Times like these he’s reminded of how sometimes humans aren’t always so sensible. After the words have sunk in, Jaehee begins to piece together her thoughts.

“That’s…. Yeah that’s a given huh? But I just— I don’t know Julien.” The last few words come out in a sort of defeated whine, the same time Jaehee nearly slumps her head entirely onto the table in front of her and Jimin subtly takes his coffee cup to hold in the safety of his lap instead. “I want to, god I want to. At some point I even tried looking at other places and submitting resumes but I never get replies back and this place, as shitty as it is, has decent pay. If I leave… I don’t know what that would mean for me and Y/N — especially Y/N.”

Jimin sits up a little straighter at the mention of you.

“She’s still in school and also working too. I don’t want to add onto her stress load by putting ourselves in a financially tough place.” Jaehee buries her hands into her hair, mussing up the long locks into disarray with quite frankly the most severe, pinched expression of trouble Jimin has ever seen on someone. It ages her almost ten years before his eyes. He won’t lie, this isn’t exactly the kind of woes he thought he would be hearing from your roommate. Originally, he had planned to entertain her for a bit, slip in that favour he has and then be on his way. But seeing and hearing the extent of her problems now, he can’t help feeling a little sympathetic because in spite of the amount of distress it’s causing your roommate, she still thinks of you, even going as far as to consider bearing with it.

Though he might not know her well, it’s clear to Jimin that she cares about you a lot.

“Does Y/N know about what’s been happening with your workplace?” He asks carefully. Jaehee blinks before her cheeks begin to colour lightly in embarrassment and she ducks her head to try and hide it, as if just realizing how much of a mess she’s become in front of someone who she’s supposed to be keeping up good impressions for. She clears her throat awkwardly, moving to smooth out her hair again by combing through the strands and bringing her hands down to rest on the nape of her neck.

“Yeah…I’ve vented to her a couple of times about it, when things got too stressful so I think she has a good idea of what’s going on.”

“And…has she ever suggested you to quit and find a new place to work?”

Jaehee pauses in thought and then shakes her head. “Not outright I don’t think. She’s always hinted at it but she never pushes me.”

Jimin makes a noncommittal noise, smiling a little to himself — that sure sounds like you; considerate maybe even to a fault, which is why the next thought that comes to mind makes him feel disquieted.

The sudden silence from the male has her finally looking up to see what the cause of it was, only to find him looking rather bothered, deep in thought with brows pinched and a slight frown tugging down the corner of his lips. It makes her retrace her words, wondering if she had said something wrong and just as she goes to ask, he speaks up.

“Listen Jaehee, I might not…know Y/N well enough,” He starts, mindful of his wording, “but I’m confident that I know, and you know, Y/N really cares for you as much as you care for her, which is probably why she doesn’t want to push you to make a really big life changing decision. And that’s just the thing….”

He inclines his head, his attention suddenly focused on Jaehee and the weight of his gaze pierces through even the tint of his sunglasses. It has Jaehee straightening upright in her seat, involuntarily bracing herself from something she’s not quite sure of.  “She cares about you — your happiness matters to her more than some shitty job that pays well.”

Again, Jaehee is shocked into a stupor for the second time today by this man, his frankness so unapologetic but also from the amount of conviction he speaks concerning you. It was….highly endearing and she had to catch herself from grinning, choosing instead to stow away this little tidbit of information (that she may or may not share to you later). But more than that, Jaehee could swear that he even sounded the slightest bit defensive?

“So even if you quit now, I highly doubt Y/N would hold it against you.” Julien says, and in a much softer undertone that doesn’t go unnoticed by Jaehee, “She’s not the type of person to do that.”

She feels strangely touched, so much that all she can do is blink, speechless. When words fail to form, Jaehee lets out a quiet, breathy laugh, choosing to resign to the fact of the matter; Julien is right about pretty much everything and she expresses as much.

“You’re right, she definitely wouldn’t do that. I guess I’m just…scared?” Jaehee wrings her fingers anxiously. “The guilt would eat me up if things go bad for us, all because I quit my job.”

She hears him hum and as she looks up towards him, he’s nodding. “That’s pretty understanding, but is staying and sacrificing yourself really going to be worth it? Gambling with your well-being isn’t something you should take so lightly.” He shifts in his seat and continues in a gentler tone, “You have the right to think about it and come to your own decision, I can’t stop you from doing that. For what it’s worth though, you deserve better and you’re surrounded by a lot of people who wouldn’t hesitate to help you.” There’s a brief pause where he seems to catch himself, then as if making up his mind however, he mumbles, “Including me.”

Jaehee can’t help her eyes widening a bit at the declaration and she nearly breaks out into a full on grin when she sees that the dark haired male in front of her has turned his attention to the window, raising his cup to sip on his coffee in what would’ve passed as a nonchalant manner if it weren’t for the slight pink colouring creeping up his neck or the way he refuses to meet her eyes anymore. For his sake, she discreetly bites her lip to manage the urge to an appreciative smile.

“Thanks Julien, for everything. I didn’t mean to unload all of my problems onto you like that but you’ve helped me see a clearer picture on everything.”

Julien shrugs, like it’s no big deal. “It’s nothing really, though you should probably sit down and tell Y/N all of this instead of me.”

Jaehee nods humming in agreement, already feeling lighter than she had been when she first sat down in this cafe. It’s made her change her perspective into a positive one, one where she doesn’t feel so trapped about her situation. So when she notices the growing number of office patrons dwindling and leaving from their respective lunch gatherings, she’s not as anxious at the prospect of going back. As if on cue, the man across from her takes a glance down at his watch (an elegant little thing; the black leather strap standing out against a pale wrist looked so flattering that Jaehee thought idly about maybe gifting Jason the same style and how nice it would look on him too…..until she balks with the realization that it was Chanel and the idea was immediately discarded).

“Looks like you’re due to head back.” Jimin remarks, noting the time before glancing up at Jaehee. She blinks, as if snapping out of a daze and it makes him quirk an eyebrow but then brushes it off; she must still be digesting everything that happened.

“A-Ah yeah…I should probably head back…soon…” He nearly snorts at the way your roommate is obviously stalling for time, not that he would blame her now that he knows what’s been going on. But with it, he thinks now is as good a time as any.

“Hey, before you go,” He starts smoothly to catch Jaehee’s attention. She perks up, inclining her head to him. “You think you can do me a small favour?”

Jimin’s not entirely surprised to see Jaehee nod expectantly, eager to accept without even hearing him out first. Oh well, makes his job a whole lot easier.

“Yeah what’s up?”

“This might sound a little strange but can you make sure Y/N…doesn't go off and do something she might regret?” He asks, trying to be as vague yet convincing as he can because if he wants to put his plan into action, Jimin can’t have you possibly seeking him out once you become too suspicious of his absent and blatant excuses on why he can’t come by. It would needlessly put you in very dangerous situations but with the help of Jaehee, he could prevent it or at the very least, stall until he’s able to pull himself together more. Even in this moment, he’s beginning to feel pinprick needles crawl up the back of his neck, the effort to keep a cool facade has him taking deep, steadying breaths. He sees Jaehee’s expression scrunch up in confusion, blinking and he doesn’t need to hear her question when it’s so clear on her face.

“I might be gone for a while, nothing too concerning so I don’t want her to worry.”

“I still don’t understand why you can’t tell her that yourself?” Jaehee points out, still very much confused as she crosses her arms. Jimin responds with a well placed wry smile, one he hopes doesn’t look more like a grimace than anything though he can’t help but feel that’s the case. It doesn’t matter, the discomforting and all too familiar stabbing has spread past his shoulder blades, making his skin break out into cold sweat. He gets up, ready to take his leave before he unwillingly keels over, the action startling Jaehee.

“It’s…It’s complicated Jaehee. Sorry I can’t tell you more but I promise it’s nothing serious. Just…” Jimin hates how out of breath he sounds, swallowing as he rushes to get everything out. “Take care of her?”

So caught off guard by his sudden sense of urgency, Jaehee stutters, “Y-Yeah of course. Julien are you sure everything’s okay? You don’t— ” She stands, about to take a step towards the taller male but he immediately retreats back and she halts.

“I’m fine Jaehee. I have to leave now, I hope to see you around.”

Julien takes off before she has the time to think of something else to say, long strides easily carrying him out of the cafe and disappearing down the side street.

Jaehee’s frozen, eyebrows remaining furrowed and mind racing in trying to process what’s taken over Julien just now. Furthermore, she starts to realize that maybe the growing clamminess of his complexion she saw earlier wasn’t a trick of the light after all. Now she’s confused and worried. What was he trying to hide? Unfortunately she doesn’t have time to linger on it, a quick glance at her phone lets her know that she’s already running five minutes late so with no other choice, she exhales heavily, squaring her shoulders and prepares to trek back to her hell hole of an office with the hope that it will be for the last time.

You felt it coming; another yawn that threatens to tear your whole mouth open and you just barely manage to stifle it. You’ve lost count on how many times you’ve yawned within the hour, each time it leaves your eyes watery and you swear what little energy you had would be expelled along with it.

On most days, this wouldn’t be anything new. It was just your luck that you get scheduled with an opening shift so in combination with your already atrocious sleeping schedule, your usual perpetually tired state is doubled. However these days, there’s something else added into the mix.

Your restless nights have since been plagued with thoughts of one reoccurring demon, and not the kind that people would imagine — figments of your own imagination conjured up from the darkest recesses of the mind to torment you — no, you’re the one who has a literal demon tormenting your thoughts and the worse part is he’s probably not even aware of it!

Clearly, you’ve underestimated yourself, didn’t anticipate for the rug to be pulled out from under your feet so quickly like that. You thought you could make nice with being in a one-sided crush forever when in reality, you’ve crossed that point of no return already and now all you want to do is confess your feelings, rip that bandage off once and for all.

You want to, but….

You’re still scared deep down. What was the lesser evil? Confess and be rejected or refrain and live not knowing? Both sound like complete agony to you yet in the end, you lack the strength to do neither.

And what’s more pressing is that time is running out for you. Above your chaotic, never-ending dilemma, the reminder stays steadily in the back of your mind like ticking of a clock, muted at first, only now it’s louder and clearer than ever — your inevitable crocodile encroaching to devour the rest of you, the ever fearful Hook.

You need to make a decision and soon before it’s beyond your control.

You’re so caught up in your thoughts that you don’t notice the end of your shift until your manager bumps into you, still in the aisle absentmindedly folding and refolding the t-shirts.  

“Girl, what are you still doing here? It’s like way past one-thirty, you need to leave!” Rachel laughs, nudging the shirts out of your hands.

“O-Oh, really?” You reply, a bit dazed but nevertheless, thankful. “I’ll see you next shift then.”

She waves and you scurry off, heading to the backroom to throw off your uniform vest, clock out and grab your things to leave. One good thing about having an early morning shift is at least you get to leave by afternoon and with the weather so nice lately, the trip back won’t add to dampen your mood.

For good measures, you even decide to stop by Starbucks to get yourself some well deserved ice coffee. The barista greeting you with a bright smile when you make it to the front counter.

“Hello, what can I get you for today?”

“Can I have a grande vanilla sweet cream cold brew?”

“For sure! Anything else?”

Your mouth opens to say that's all but then you stop, thinking to yourself briefly and then instead reply, “And one venti Very Berry Hibiscus Refresher.”

The barista nods, happy to punch in your additional order and that’s when you confirm then that that will be all. You move off to the side after you pay to wait for your drinks. You pull out your phone as you wait and absently wonder if you should text Jaehee about leaving her drink in the fridge when she gets home.

Lately, you’ve noticed Jaehee’s work schedule has become more sporadic than what you’re used to seeing; sometimes she’s home around three in the afternoon and other times you think she didn’t even go to work that day. Of the times she’s gone before you wake up, you find that she either has gone to work or was actually at Jason’s for the entire night. You don’t question it much, already getting the feeling that the cause is her troubles at work and she’s aware that you’re aware of it too, if the perplexed looks you shoot her whenever you see her on those occasions were anything to go by.

If this is Jaehee taking time off to simply get away and rest mentally, you’re not against it (in fact, you’re surprised that she hasn’t done so sooner). Regardless, you hope she’ll feel better and though it’s not much, you’ll lend her your ears and shoulder…..and maybe a large dose of her favourite drink.

Your name gets called and you go to collect your orders, then set off home. You arrive without further incident, enjoying the nice weather as you go. When you step through your door, you’re mildly surprised to find that your roommate in question isn’t home so you toe off your shoes and head to the kitchen to drop off her drink in the fridge.

After refreshing yourself by taking off your makeup and changing into more comfortable clothes, you decide to start prepping for dinner. Tonight’s menu is an amalgamation of things — you plan for chicken quesadilla with sour cream as the main dish but after spying a bag of frozen Korean dumplings and spicy rice cake, your stomach demands them to be served up as well. As they say, comfort food is always the best food.

You’ve just about finished grilling the last of the chicken breast and peppers to be used for the quesadilla when you hear the door unlock. Without having to check, you know it’s Jaehee and no sooner you turn towards the kitchen threshold, you see her trotting in.

“Hey.” She greets, doing little to conceal the tiredness in her voice and you offer a sympathetic smile.

“Hey, welcome home. You should go wash up and I’ll have the food ready when you’re done.”

Jaehee smiles gratefully at you before heading off in the direction of her room. You finish grilling up the remaining dumplings when Jaehee reappears again, bare faced and comfy like you are. As she seats herself at the small little table, you serve the quesadilla and dumplings first, letting the spicy rice cake simmer on low heat a little longer on the stove.

Looking at Jaehee now, you can’t help but to notice how worn she looks, dark bags beginning to form under her eyes even when she lets out a satisfied groan from taking her first bite.

“God I’ve been craving this all day.” She mumbles around a mouthful.

“You’re telling me.” You nod between chews. “As soon as I saw the bag of dumplings in the freezer, I had to make some. Same thing with the spicy rice cake, it’s been so long.”

“And that’s why we’re still roommates for so long.”

You laugh, agreeing wholeheartedly; your palette and overall love for food is what made your bond so strong, amongst other important things. You continue to eat in amicable silence, simply enjoying the food and each other’s company as part of unwinding for the day though a part of you itched to ask after Jaehee, to check in on how she’s really holding up. You only hold off for the time being to let her have her fill and forget about it, if just for a moment.

Eventually, by the time you’re both making quick work on the spicy rice cakes do you retrieve her little pick-me-up drink and wordlessly place it in front of her.

“Oh my god, girl.” She sighs out happily and you’ve never seen her light up so brightly in an instance. Your smiles matches hers as you take your seat again to pick at the remaining rice cakes.

“Knowing your workplace, you look like you could use it.”

After taking a hearty gulp, Jaehee places her drink down, a quiet pensive look taking over her expression. You can clearly see the thoughts swirling inside of her head, debating with herself but you wait patiently until she’s ready, if she’s ready. When you think the moment has passed, Jaehee finally speaks.

“Actually, I’m quitting.”

The shock of it still gets you even when you knew at some point this would happen. It was long overdue in your opinion, something you’ll admit you wished would happen because considering everything, you never understood how Jaehee had managed to put up with it for so long. You worried it would run her into the ground sooner than later and despite all the talks of leaving, they remain just that; talks. So over time, you choose to not push out of respect but remain firm in your beliefs.

Sitting up a little straighter, you swallow the chewy rice cake and nod approvingly. “Wow, for real? Like, you turned in your two weeks notice and everything?”

Jaehee breathes a laugh, sounding very much chagrined. “I think I did a little more than that.” At the inquisitive tilt of your head, she elaborates. “I sat down to talk to Ethan, my manager and I just…broke down and told him everything. Like, everything — how I felt about lying to candidates for a job that isn’t even worth leaving their current one for, how I don’t have even the basic benefits working for the company, and just feeling…awful coming into work every day.”

She inhales, “And then two days after that, he called me into his office and told me he was letting me go.”

Now that was shocking news to you. You blink incredulously, “After all that, he had the nerve to fire you? That just shows how much he cares.”

Jaehee can only nod, bemused herself but not entirely bothered. “Yeah, I mean I would be more mad about it if it wasn’t for the fact that I found out the company is literally a pyramid scheme.”

Your mouth drops without meaning to and you’re rendered speechless; definitely wasn’t expecting that. Jaehee lets a bark of laughter at your reaction.

“Yeah, exactly but it all makes sense now and it’s made me feel better about my choice. Now I’m just mad that I didn’t realize sooner.”

“Well I’m all the more glad for you.” You say, “Fuck that guy.”

Your remark earns you a half smile from Jaehee, one that is more morose than it is mirthful. It fades as quickly into something more serious, eyes downcast and fingers idly tracing the perspiration that’s gathered on her cup. “I’m happy I don’t have to work at that place anymore, but I don’t know what we’re gonna do about money from now on.”

She says it so sombrely that you might think she’s telling you the world is ending tomorrow. Okay, that might be a stretch but you do understand where Jaehee’s concerns are coming from. You’re not gonna lie and say Jaehee’s job didn’t play a huge role in helping you both pay rent and live well enough that you didn’t have to constantly worry about living from pay cheque to pay cheque. You’re lucky to be on a partial scholarship, but even then, you had close calls on paying rent on time. There’s a lot up in the air now, no doubt there’s gonna be a lot to change and though it’s worrisome, you find yourself not caring because more than anything, you’re happy for Jaehee and that’s something to worth celebrating instead.

“Yeah, we’re probably gonna have to do a lot adjusting once the time comes but really Jaehee, I’m just happy that you don’t have to work that awful job anymore.” You say, reassuring. “We can worry about all of that when it comes.”

Jaehee glances up then, staring at you as if searching for hints of a bravado but when she sees how genuine you are for her, she smiles and it reaches her eyes fully.

“You sure? Last chance.”

  “I’m positive. Hell, I’ll even put in a good word for you and who knows, we might end up working together.”

She’s snorts, shaking her head. “Thanks, I’ll consider it. At this point I think even a retail job would be so much better than what that was.” You purse your lips, considering the thought but agree in the end because as much as you loathed your job, at least there were moments where you could have fun with your co-workers; shit talking customers and managers is always a great way to pass time and bond.

You recline back in your seat as the atmosphere transitions into something lighter, like a weight has cleared the air and sip lightly at your ice coffee while Jaehee does the same with her drink. When she finishes it, she exhales, visibly more relaxed.

“So,” She begins, “what about you? Are you still talking with Julien?”

You blink, clearing your throat and scratch your cheek before answering distractedly, “Um…Yeah, like…on and off?”

Truth be told, the last message you sent to him was four nights ago. They were nothing special, just your usual chats as a way for you to talk about your day with sprinkles of bantering in between and maybe….a little flirting? Your head spins at the thought, butterflies erupting in your gut and even though these chats reduce you to a sputtering mess, they’re the things you look forward to the most at the end of the day. Which makes it worrying that you’ve noticed how they don’t last as long as they used to. You try not to let it bother you too much, thinking that perhaps it was just the insatiable craving for interactions that comes with realizing your feelings for someone.

And a hint of desperation in knowing that he may soon leave.

Maybe it’s the nature of the conversations that has taken place tonight or maybe you too needed to unload a bit off your chest, but you find yourself confessing your deepest worries too, finally speaking them into existence.

“Lately, I….I don’t know, it’s hard to explain.” You struggle, stopping to try and find the right words but you think you won’t have such luck. Swallowing, you power on through the best you can anyways. “I don’t know when it happened, hell I didn’t think it would even turn out this way. I thought all we could be is just friends but then….” You scoff a laugh at yourself, “I caught feelings, and now I don’t know what to do with them.”

Jaehee takes in your words across from you with a serious air though it doesn’t quite mask how ecstatic she is at the news. The sight makes you feel better, although you wished you could match her enthusiasm.

“Are you planning on telling him then?”

The sigh you let out nearly takes everything out of you and you slump against your chair, nearly sinking down to your waist.

“That’s the thing; I don’t know if I should? Like, am I reading too much into this? Or like, maybe he—“ It pains you to say it, voice coming out small but you can’t rule out the possibility, “Maybe he might not look at it the same way I do. I don’t want to ruin our friendship just because I misread everything. And what’s worse is that….He’s…going away soon so I just feel like….It might not be a smart idea after all but at the same time I just….” You inhale from running out of breath mid-rant, only to finish off with a helpless, “I really like him….”

God you must sound pathetic…

“Okay first off, I highly doubt that’s the case.” Jaehee jumps in with surprising speed. “From what I know, it doesn’t seem like it’s just you. I…I actually ran into him not too long ago during lunch at work…”

“You did?” You sit up at that, interested.

“Yeah, we sat down and I was feeling so overwhelmed that day that I ended up telling him about work too. He told me how I should pluck up the courage to quit because I deserve better and to be honest, one of the reasons why I didn’t want to to do it was because I was scared that it would put us in a tough spot, especially with you being in school and all. I didn’t want to pressure you with anything because of something that was on me. But he wouldn’t have any of it,” She lets out a quiet laugh with a shake of her head, recalling the conversation. “He said that it doesn’t matter because you’d support me all the way, that you care more about my happiness than some job that pays well.”

Jaehee shoots you a wide smile, taking one of your hand and giving it a squeeze. “And he was right. He didn’t have any doubts that you wouldn’t have my back and…he even offered to help out if things get bad for us when he didn’t need to. I don’t know about you but that just tells me how much he thinks and cares about you.”

“If I’m gonna be honest, aside from BTS, I’ve never seen you really feel for someone so strongly before, and that has to mean something. I can see how much you really care about him too. So I think you should tell him, maybe even more so before he leaves because I don’t want to see you regret not telling him instead. I know it's gonna eat you up.”

Now you’re the one overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions running through you at once; touched, assured, surprised to hear that Jimin had been the one to console Jaehee like that, and to hear first hand how supportive he is of her and you…

Something surges in your chest, the feeling almost leaving you breathless but you’re beginning to feel invigorated, more sure of yourself. It gives you hope, a dangerous thing but you want to so badly believe that there’s something there, something more.

“You…really think so?”

She gives you a pointed look, stare unwavering and that alone is more than enough. “One hundred percent, you never know until you try but I think he’s just as into you. And if by the off chance that I’m wrong…I’ll be there for you, whether to pig out on a carton of ice cream or to beat somebody up. I gotchu girl, like how you got me.”

You take a deep breath in, squeezing Jaehee’s hand back and her confidence rubs off on you. You let it take away whatever remaining doubts you have left. There's no excuse to back down now, or to run from it.

You’re gonna do it.

You have to do it.

163 notes · View notes

zuffer-weird-girl · 5 years ago

Note

Kais s/o somehow meets her mother in law and confronts her about Kais childhood Can we get a scenario?

Time to beat someone's ass!!!! :D

"Kai please I beg you..." you whined while he searched for some cleaning product "Just grab any of those..."

"(Y/n)." He growled before scoffing at not seing that thing on there "That thing can kill all the germs. And I refuse to live and even breath on a house that is filthy."

You sighed in hopeless a 'mysophobia' before widening a bit your eyes at seing the familiar bottle and snatching it quickly.

"Found it!" You chirped happily and he turned to look at you, his eyes softening a bit as he messed with your hair.

"Good job angel." He muttered before picking one bag of yours and placing the bottle on it "Next is a romba."

"... are you for real?" He simply nodded and you sighed in despair, accepting your fate and following your boyfriend.

While you walked you accidentally bumped into a woman's shoulder, yelping a bit but quickly turning to her with a apologetic face.

"I'm so sorry ma'am!" You bowed a bit while the woman scoffed, rubbing her shoulder with a disgusted face.

"You should be." She said arrogantly before turning on her shoes and walking.

"Huh. Rude." You muttered in offense before you turned to Kai.

The scene that you got shocked you though...

His eyes were wide open, looking at the woman who had just passed through you guys, as a sheen of sweat started to form on his skin and the hives appeared slowly.

He even seemed to be trembling a bit.

"Kai?" He didn't answer "Kai, love?" You were a bit more loud on this one and went to touch him but he quickly slapped your hand away in instinct.

"Dont touch me." His eyes were still locked with the figurine while he shakily answered you.

Despite the burning in your hand, and the dissaproval looks of some people on there, you reached quickly both of your hands to his face.

"I said dON-" he stopped immediately when he saw instead the woman he despised so much the (E/c) that always looked at him with nothing but love and care.

"Kai. Is me." You cooed sadly, getting finally a reaction of him when he breath out a shaky breath before breathing in and returning to his compusture.

"Apologies... I... losed myself a bit..." he muttered while grabbing in your wrists and putting them down.

"Who even was that to leave you in such a state?" You whispered worriedly while his eyes darkned a bit.

"... The woman who I despise to be bounded by blood with." He growled before taking another breath to return to his stoic expression.

Oh...

His... his biological mother.

You felt your blood turning into fire as your hands turned into fits even despote holding the bags and jaw clenching.

Chisaki trusted you enough to tell you about his past, one of those breakdown he ended up talking about it. And lord, how you had only hate towards them.

A wave of pure wrath consumed you as he still was glaring at the ground.

"... let's go. This place is sick." He suddenly muttered, surprisingly going to grab on your hand.

You knew that he wasn't okay. And this was all because he only saw her...

"Uh... Kai?" You called, dodging his gloved hand and almost regretting when his eyebrows furrowed at the action "Can... Can I grab some ingredients for.. baking?"

He arched a dissaproving eyebrow at you... before just sighing when you brought the puppy's eyes.

"Make it quick. I feel myself getting sick at staying in this place by only one minute more." He growled, you immediately nodded and went after the woman.

"Excuse me?" You almost shouted when you noticed the woman, she immediately turning with a eyebrow lifted up and a scowl.

"You again?" She sighed in annoyance while you stopped.

"Your name once or even carry Chisaki as a surname?" She only arched her eyebrow at you even more.

"Why the sudden interest?"

"Well..." you glared at her, venom now dripping from your words "I think that sadly we are related a bit."

"You?" She chuckled ironically "Sweety are you sick in the head or something?" She asked, making your form to shake a bit.

"No. Am not. But I guess you are one considering the fact that you mentally abused your son and called the police on him, abandoned and even contracted some corrupted heroes to see if they got to kill him." You sayed coldly.

The woman's eyes widened in horror at your words, brow hair, slightly white considering her age, falling a bit in her forehead as she clenched her teeth together, stepping back away from you a bit.

"How-How do you know about this?" She growled.

"Not wanting to break the news too soon but-" you tilted your head and glared daggers at her "I am dating him. Chisaki Kai."

You noticed the shiver on her as she gasped at your last words, muttering to herself how was it possible that he was still out there... making you even angrier.

"Why?" You asked "Why after all the torture you and your husband made him go through then do so.ething like that?! Leaving him in the dirt wasn't enough for you?!" You felt your eyes burning while her eyes darkened and recuperated her arrogance.

"Why would I ever want a murderer in the first place? That boy was cursed." She hissed in disgust "His father always was right. The first time that we found out about his quirk guess what he did honey? He killed a pacience of my husband."

"By accident." You growled back "Kids who developed quirks for the first time have no idea how to control them. Even as a quirkless person, I know that." You spitted while her glare only intensified.

"Trying to give a lesson on me whore? He killed his own father. What was I suppose to do? Hug him and tell him it was okay?!"

"Everthing but treat him like garbage dammit!" You exclaimed "Havd any idea how much pain and suffering he went through because of that man and you?!"

"Pain?" She asked coldly and sarcastically "He was diagnosted with sociopathy idiot. He is broken. A broken shell in a human's body. He doesn't and can't feel any emotions at ALL."

It went silent a bit before you bitterly let out a chuckle, placing a hand in your face as you shook your head in disbelief.

"Why the hell are you laughing now?"

"You're really, really don't know him huh?" You let your hand fall with your gaze "Thankfully you didn't stayed with him. You are a terrible and disgusting excuse for a mother you know that?"

She gasped in offense stepping closer to you with a angry frow.

"For some brat tou got some nerves to talking with someone older than you like that." She growled while you tilted your head with a sarcastic and teasing smile.

"I have respect with those who deserved ma'am... not with types like yourself." You lowered your tone of voice threateningly "You think you did the good thing? Greedy and pathetic are you then... At least you're going to burn in hell along with your husband."

"One last thing." You glared at her "You will never, EVER, be able to describe Kai. Because he is the most caring and protect man I ever layed my eyes on, and different from you, I am blessed and thank everyday for having him on my life."

She scoffed and lifted her hand up to give you a slap and you widened your eyes... not because of her actions, but because of the figurine behind her and the gloved hand that grabbed her wrist painfully.

She went to shout at whoever was holding her wrist before she went silent, eyes growing wide in fear as their met angry amber orbs staring her down.

"Sick." He muttered lowly and darkly "Dare to lay your filth hands on them and I will make you regret of ever existing." He pushed her away and let go of her body with a scoff. Making the woman hit the slightest the aisle.

Kai's eyes were now murderous as he stared at her, not even blinking as he standed in your front. You, afraid that he was mad at you, merely lowered your head a bit... before you noticed him turning his back at the woman to cup your chin in his gloved hands and tilt your head up to look at those eyes.

"Are you okay?" His voice was... so soft, so smooth and caring. You felt yourself coming back to your relaxed one as you smiled up at him in adoration, grabbing on his gloved hand as you nodded.

"H-How did you even-?" She didn't finished speaking, flinching when Chisaki glared at her, slowly lifting his hand up to overhaul his glive in front of her eyes.

"Interesting right? After some years someone can get total control of their sickness." He said nonchalantly before touching one part of the wall, making the security camera to break as a spike grew close to her throat.

"I can easily kill you by many ways right here and now for even daring to git my angel..." he growled before making the spikes disappear, also returning his glove back "But I won't do it... at least now."

He urged you to start to walk as he followed close behind, one hand in your lower back, leaving a nervous and shaky elder woman.

"I will call the police on both of you DAMN BR-"

"Do it." He sended her a cold and uncaring one side look "Try to call on someone from the Shie Hassaikai. You will be found dead on at least eight different countries... besides-" he showed his palm at perfect isle and the broken camera above "What proofs do you have?"

She gagged with teary eyes as she looked up at Chisaki, shakily standing up.

"Do not even come close to me or my angel ever again if you dont want to die in the same way that man did countless times." He started to walk again with you... leaving the woman behind without looking back.

The moment you both payed for the things and left the mall, he surprisingly let out a shaky breath as he fisted his shirt.

"Kai?" You immediately holded him "You're okay hon? I'm so sorry for tha-"

"Why you're apologizing?" He said a bit breathless before getting up to stare down at you "My angel, you defended me from that woman... there is nothing to be ashamed or even guilty for."

You made a lovely sound before hugging him, ignoring his grunts and protests when you nuzzled his neck lovingly.

"My brave yakusa man" you cooed, giggling at hearing his breath got caught in his throat "I'm the luckiest person in the world!"

He brough a gloved hand to his covered face, aproaching more his mask to his burning face as he coughed.

"Forgot that we are on public idiot? Stop with this already." He growled while you hugged him even tighter "(Y/N) I swear to god let go-"

"Buuu you're no fun.." you whined while looking up at him with a mocking pout.

"Leech." He growled with furrowed eyebrows, but still lowering his arms even with the bags for awkwardly holding your waist to him.

"Birdie." You poked your tongue out before gasping when in one blink of a eye Chisaki lowered his mask and caught your tongue in his mouth in a kiss.

You responded but he quickly broke away, smirking devilish at your pout and blushed cheeks.

"... my sweet angel." He whispered lowly while rubbing his thumb on your cheek.

"Handsome devil." You completed with a smile before he scoffed and got going, calling for you to be quick.

#overhaul x reader #overhaul scenario #fanfic overhaul #overhaul #chisaki kai imagine scenario #chisaki kai x reader #kai chisaki #chisaki kai #bnha imagine #bnha x reader #bnha characters #bnha villains #bnha #my writing #zuffer writings

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tfw-no-tennis · 4 years ago

Text

mtmte liveblog issue 19

it’s 2021 now!! time for more transformers

we start off w/a flashback showing tyrest retrieving ultra magnus’s body from the ship - and we get a look at magnus’s spark, which is the green color of a 0.1%er [eyes emoji]

tyrest punching magnus..... grrrrr leave my dad alone bastard man

‘the divided self’ what a good title

rodimus is like listen man this is a lot for my poor thot brain to take in

in flashback land, we see tyrest immediately launch into a crazy person spiel about how he can and will edit the law as he sees fit to conform to the situation, because that doesn't seem like a blatant abuse of power or a huge conflict of interest or anything

oooh the screen in the corner that says ‘thought warfare,’ I see that

oof, poor magnus. its gotta be rough to hear your boss rant about how bad at your job you are....especially bc this is right after overlord called magnus a joke and nearly killed him

its especially brutal bc as magnus says, his job is his life

augh, I love the panel where the armor is falling off around minimus, and then the one where he’s holding the ultra magnus head...poetic

its fascinating that there was an ‘original’ magnus who was an actual guy, and then tyrest chose to make him into this legacy symbol - I'm assuming the OG magnus had no say in this, and probably didn't even know that he was gonna become this lawman legacy figure

I do wanna know though - obviously everyone thought that ultra magnus was one dude, but how did the different guys wearing the armor deal w/that? like, did minimus have people coming up to him like ‘hey ultra magnus old buddy! remember when we fought those guys in that one place? good times!’ like, do they have to study up on the lives of the past armor wearers to prepare for the role of ultra magnus?

augh poor minimus, of course he’s been wondering about what happened with overlord after he was KO’d

oof, drift...I feel like minimus looks surprised and a little skeptical at the idea that drift was the one behind the entire overlord thing - which is interesting bc as we saw at the beginning of the story, he doesn't exactly trust drift, but it’s still pretty far-fetched that one person orchestrated the entire thing

tailgate :(

the concept of a load-bearer is SUPER cool, I love it so much

it also puts a much-needed limit on things - as in, there IS a limit to how much weight/mass a normal cybertronian frame can carry, which is why you don't see everybody upgrading to be Massive - bc they actually CANT

oof, the worst part is that tyrest is RIGHT, minimus essentially DID have a nervous breakdown after the war ended bc of the rigid way he views the world

mental health support is clearly in shambles for cybertronians, yikes. they literally have 1 therapist for their entire race, and he’s not even licensed anymore due to hipaa violations. what a mess

the ‘attention deflectors’ thing is so cool and clever and also a great explanation as to why ratchet or anyone else never said ‘hey wait a minute, you're actually a much smaller dude in a trench coat’

I love tailgate knowing all the stuff about the autobot code bc of magnus...my BOY

and THATS why minimus was asking about skids specifically earlier!

oh minimus, please don't put so much stock in tyrest being stable and resonable...

aaaand there's skids and swerve! brainstorm says it best - ‘because something unexpected hasn't happened for at least nine seconds.’ lmao ily brainstorm

finally checking in w/whirl and cyclonus - god I love that. whirl asking cyclonus how many cons he killed and cyc is like psh I wasn't keeping count....................ok it was six

hhhhh cyclonus IS looking for a cure for tailgate, even though he told tg that there wasn’t anything to hope for....excuse me as I go be emo

and now we flash over to the unethical medical conduct hell zone, where pharma is being weird and horny and ratchet is appropriately horrified

I seriously love how unhinged pharma looks, the art & colors do such a good job conveying his feral energy

ratchet has some massive dick energy for taunting pharma when he’s currently just a head and pharma has dual chainsaws for hands

ugh, I love whirls speech about anger...and I feel like he really does see cyclonus as a peer, despite cyclonus wanting to kill him, which is why he tells cyclonus all of this

I fuckgin love that cyclonus’s reaction to very suddenly getting stabbed thru the abdomen is to just glance down at the sword, looking mildly inconvenienced

back over to ratchet - and at first its like oh wow I can’t believe pharma was stupid enough to let ratchet goad him into this contest....but then you see first aid and ambulon and its like UH OH this is gonna be BAD

the idea that getting sliced in half is no big deal for a cybertronian is wild

‘you're gonna let doctor djd cut us in half?’ yeahhhh that's an appropriate reaction, yikes

FUCKING LENGTHWAYS GOD

pharma you piece of shit

poor ambulon :( :( :( that's fucking brutal. amazing panel but....jesus

and like, to further my point from last issue’s liveblog - the fact that this very gore-y panel is okay, but swearing isn't...that's really funny honestly. I guess robo-gore is acceptable, while I'm guessing regular ole run of the mill human gore wouldn't be

then back to cyclonus, who is still looking only vaguely put out by the sword stuck right thru him

and then cyclonus just pulls it right out, which is a very bad idea for humans but probably not as big of a deal for big near-immortal alien robots

circle of light stuck in capitalistic urban hellscape cubicals

poor skids, being asked to stand trial while having no idea what his crime is due to Big Amnesia

OH SHITTTT I totally forgot that getaway shows up here

that is super clever though, with chromedome confusing the name ‘getaway’ with the concept ‘needing to escape’

cant believe tyrest is really dumb enough to tell minimus all his evil plans

BUT that means its time for some very important forged vs constructed cold lore

jro spelling ‘program’ as ‘programme’ made me remember when he said that he considers everyone on the lost light to be british, which is perhaps the least valid thing he’s ever said vhbghjsdbfjkhasbjk

the idea that they used the matrix - which is portrayed as kind of a holy object - in reproductive experiments is really interesting

AUGHHHHH this is all so good and interesting...im really fascinated w/this particular brand of like, alien robot racism/constructism/whatever you wanna call it - I feel like it does such a good job as a plot device, where many other ‘fantasy racism’ concepts from other franchises fail, bc there's not really a ‘human metaphor’ being used here (as far as I know/can tell) - as in, this isn't a thinly veiled metaphor for something that happened/could happen in human history

in fact, this type of bigotry (or w/e you wanna call it) isn't something that is even really possible in humans - I guess if there was a stigma against being born via ivf or something...? but there isn't, so there's no obvious real-world equivalent, which I take as a sign of good writing and worldbuilding - it makes the cybertronians feel more Real, bc of course they would have their own types of bigotry based off of completely different things than humans

additionally - and this is crucial - tyrest is wrong: there’s no like, inherent moral corruption in cold constructed bots. there's no difference at all, other than method of construction. fantasy racism plotlines often flounder here, with the oppressors having a ‘valid reason’ for oppressing the oppressed, but tyrest is just operated on religious zealot bs and some biased science

like, dude, did you ever think that maybe there are other reasons why your trials only condemned cold constructed bots? like, maybe the trial itself was biased? or societal conditions were to blame? correlation is not causation, my dude, especially when the conclusion is ‘cold constructed bots are inherently SINNERS’ lmao

like, tyrest rlly said ‘FUCK separation of church and state,’ huh

anyways I just think the whole cold construction vs forged thing is really interesting and well-done, and serves as a good precursor to the more fleshed-out functionism stuff we see later

so tyrest is clearly off his rockers w/the whole drilling thing - dude, you accidentally gave yourself a lobotomy, okay - but I find it kinda funny that he’s right about a lot of that stuff he said at the end, about primus and the guiding hand and stuff being real

cyclonus saying ‘tailgate and the others’...I see you, man, I see you

also cyclonus looks fine now??? didn't he just get stabbed???

ah, tyrest sprinkling a little light genocide onto his plan to find salvation. nice, dude!

MINIMUS NOOOOOOOOO

‘fully deserved’ SHUT UP BIIIIITCH

poor minimus is taking a lot of Ls this arc, geez

oof, great issue! again, as usual....I loved the lore we got this issue, its so interesting...and some good character stuff too. I love minimus, I feel like he’s gonna be my fav this readthru; my first read my fav was brainstorm, second readthru was whirl, and I feel like its minimus/magnus this time. I just love his character arc...

hype af for more B)

#lj rereads mtmte

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queeenpersephone · 5 years ago

Note

hiya liv! for the fic writer asks: 1, 7, 8, 13. how are you doing? are you surviving quarantine?

Hi love, it’s so good to hear from you!! Yes, lol, but online law classes are just awful. Altogether I’m okay though. How are you???

1. who is the hardest character for you to write?

Depends on the fandom!! Usually characters I’m either apathetic towards or dislike, because when I want to write a character I’ll watch and rewatch/read and reread until I can figure out their dialogue and mannerisms. As far as characters I’d really like to write but it just never works out - I have a lot of trouble with the Doctor?? Idk I’ve never figured that one out.

7. What fic of yours makes you the most emotional?

Hmm it’s probably a tie between hold my hand in yours (and we will not fear what hands like ours can do) (the librarians) or leave-taking (marvel). The former because it deals with touch-sensitivity which lends itself to really aching writing, and leave-taking because it is really my love letter to the mcu. Plus I got an overwhelmingly positive response to the latter about how it helped people deal with endgame and Tony and Nat’s death.

8. What is a scene you wrote that you are most proud of?

oof.. the cacw chapter of my mcu rewrite probably? I spent so much time thinking about character motivations - Steve and Tony were actually done relatively well in the movie, but I didn’t feel like anyone else made sense lol and the one person that I really thought the audience should side with (Natasha) was criminally underused. So I had a lot of fun figuring out how to fix it while still having the same emotional outcome. Here’s a little taste of it:

Clint wraps his arms around Natasha tightly. “Bruce and I will watch over them. This isn’t over.”

“I remember someone telling me I was crazy for believing in this team,” she teases. The words are empty - and not for the first time, Clint wonders what Tony said to her hours ago. He knows that Natasha won’t tell him, but Tony will. If he knows what’s good for him, that is.

“Uh-huh, and you’re still crazy,” he clarifies. “Doesn’t mean you aren’t right.”

He leaves them there. Part of his family. He doesn’t know when he’ll see her again. But he knows that he will. The Avengers aren’t over. No, he’ll see to that.

13. How do you come up with your titles?

haha it’s 99% quotes from poetry and songs because I’m super basic. It’s funny - I just posted a fic last week that was the first in years that didn’t have a title based off of one of the other, and I nearly had a mental breakdown figuring that out.

send me asks about my fics!!

#the librarians #marvel #marvel writing #my writing #fics #answered #ask games #mysticalmagicalpineapple #friends tag #thanks for asking!!

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nyrandrea · 6 years ago

Text

The Night Shift

Sorry for the longer wait but here’s another chapter! The whole story so far is also available to read on ao3!

Mike managed to survive the night, but what’s he gonna do now? Go back? Surely not....

Small warning for swears and mention of blood.

Chapter 3 - The Fresh Start

This was the only time when he felt truly calm.

No stress, no anxiety. Just a cocoon of warmth, dark and protection keeping him safe from the outside world. With a small smile of content, he snuggled in to his side. If only this could last forever…

A shrill beeping brought everything back to reality.

With a small moan of protest, Mike slowly opened his eyes, wincing when the bright rays of the sun blinded him through his window.

‘Ugh…how long have I been asleep…?’

He lazily turned his head to look at the alarm clock, which was still beeping away. It was 4pm in the afternoon, still early.

Resisting the temptation to roll over and doze, he forced himself to get up from bed and stumbled throughout his apartment. The space was pitifully small, with his living room and kitchen being literally combined and his bedroom and bathroom were so small that even a mouse would feel claustrophobic.

But hey, beggars can’t be choosers. At least it was clean and comfortable.

Mike went through to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water before dumping himself onto the couch, taking a long drink. His strained throat was incredibly grateful.

With a satisfied sigh, he set the glass down and rubbed his temples, he finally had a moment to properly think.

What…what happened last night?

‘Went to work, checked the cameras as usual, things went south, animatronics came after me, the door wouldn’t work and…’

Mike’s eyes snapped open.

The whole incident was a blur and he couldn’t remember much, but he could recall how the fox animatronic towered over him, the glint of his hook in the faded lights. Mike tried to fight back but…somehow, the robot started talking.

Mike knew that he was incredibly lucky even to just be sitting here, instead of being stuffed into one of those backstage Freddy suits, probably gutted and slowly bleeding to death. He instinctively shuddered at the thought.

‘Yeah…probably shouldn’t think of that.’ Mike reminded himself.

But it did make him think. Somehow, he had managed to convince one of those things not to kill him. Just by talking to it.

Well, lying would be the more accurate term. He honestly didn’t think it would have even worked.

But what about tonight?

He may have managed to fend Foxy off but that was only on the terms that somehow he would talk to Freddy.

Mike never thought he would dread such a…goofy sounding name.

But alas, Freddy was the leader of the group. According to Foxy, his word meant law in that pizzeria, and right now he really wanted Mike stuffed into a suit.

‘I have to convince him that I’m not an endoskeleton, otherwise I’m dead.’

Though there was still the option of just…not going back at all. Why was he even questioning this?

Mike frowned, there was always this niggling presence at the back of his mind that beckoned him to go every night, despite the horrors that awaited him. It was like…he had unfinished business there or something. He needed to go back.

‘God, I’m such a dumbass.’ Mike thought to himself as he covered his face and let out a defeated sigh.

He wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take. This was only his third week and he had already had a complete mental breakdown. During the day he would flinch at the slightest of noises, jump at moving shadows.

He was an absolute wreck.

To further prove this point, he nearly leaped from the couch when there was a light knock at the door.

“Mr. Schmidt?” A small voice called out from behind the door, “Mr. Schmidt, it’s Aaron.” There was a small pause. “I um…think I left my ball in your apartment. Mister?”

Mike was taking a moment to comprehend what was even going on before it dawned on him.

“Shit…” The guard quietly swore as he scrambled to get up from the couch before turning to the door, “J-Just wait a moment, I’ll…go look for it!” He shouted as he practically started to run towards his bedroom to get some pants and a shirt on.

Aaron lived just a few rooms down in the apartment complex, kid was about…eleven or twelve? Mike didn’t really know, but he was young. He had moved in not so long ago with his mother who…was quite another story altogether.

As soon as Mike looked decent enough, he looked around his messy flat for the spherical toy. How it managed to get in here was beyond him…

But lo and behold, there it was. Sitting in the corner of the living room/kitchen.

The guard frowned but decided not to question it as he picked the ball up and moved to the front door, opening it up to the little boy, who beamed when he saw the object in Mike’s arms.

“You lookin’ for this, champ?” Mike jested as he lightly tossed it to the kid, who caught it with ease.

“Oh man, thanks Mr-“

“Mike.” The guard interrupted, “Mister makes me feel old….”

Aaron stopped but nodded.

“So uh…how’s things…?” Mike started.

“Fine.” The child bluntly answered, switching his gaze down to the ball as he dropped it to the ground and rolled it around with his foot.

Mike gave him a sympathetic look. He had sort of took to looking after the kid every now and then, taking him out to play soccer or to grab a bite to eat. Aaron always asked hm to take him to Fazbear’s but he refused.

Always.

In a way, he had sort of become like a discount big brother figure. But it wasn’t right. None of it was. He just didn’t know what to do. And with work becoming more of a problem for Mike, he just couldn’t be around to look out for the kid all that much anymore, and he was worried about the consequences it could bring.

He decided to at least ask, maybe get more of a grasp of what was going on.

“How’s your…?”

“She’s fine.” The boy curtly answered again, before asking, “Hey, do you wanna hang out later?”

Mike frowned but quickly covered it up with a smile, he decided not to push the topic further.

“Sorry champ, but I have to drop into work today.”

“I thought you worked at night.” Aaron said, his tone dropping to one of disappointment.

“Paperwork to sort out, just boring adult stuff.” Mike lied, though he would have taken paperwork over dealing with homicidal robots any day.

“Oh…” Aaron trailed off with a thoughtful expression.

Oh God, Mike knew that look.

‘Don’t ask to come. Don’t ask to come. Don’t ask to-‘

“Can I come with ya?”

‘Damn it.’

“You know why I can’t do that.” Mike sighed, crossing his arms.

“Because it’s work.” Aaron sarcastically drawled out with a roll of his eyes, “But c’mon, just say I’m your like…. apprentice or somethin’!”

“You’re eleven.”

“Twelve!” The boy corrected, not looking best pleased.

“I can’t.” The guard tried to change the subject quickly, “But I can bring back a pizza, yeah? Then we can hang out.”

“…Fine.” Aaron pushed up his massive glasses and gave Mike a determined look, “But all the other kids get to go there.”

Mike chuckled, a little in amusement, mostly in nervousness. Oh, if he only knew.

Actually, he took that back. No child should witness the horrors of that place.

Before Mike could say anything else, Aaron kicked his ball down the hall and chased after it, “I’ll be at the park so get me there!” He shouted, before adding, “And bring pepperoni!”

Mike gave a light sigh, “Right.”

Closing the door behind him, he glanced down at his watch, it was nearly 5pm. The place would be shutting soon. If he was going to return tonight, he was going to need help to somehow get Freddy’s attention without getting himself killed. Foxy seemed to be his best option, but was he even operational during the day?

Mike took a deep breath.

“Ah, screw it.” The guard mumbled as he quickly grabbed his coat, “I’ll take my chances.”

Besides, he did promise that kid a pizza.

As he pushed the large glass doors open, he was met with nothing but absolute chaos.

Children were running and screaming everywhere, food and toys flew across the restaurant. It was difficult to avoid being hit and not trip up over the hyperactive kids, but Mike managed nonetheless.

A few of the parents seemed as though they were trying to calm their own children down, but most of them were either outside smoking or were sitting at the tables, just…not bothering. Mike slowly managed to get through to the dining area, where he noticed exhausted looking staff trying to keep up with the amount of orders they were receiving. The waitresses struggled to manoeuvre their way through the crowds while balancing steaming hot trays of pizza on their hands.

Huh. Maybe his job wasn’t so bad after all.

“Excuse me, sir?” A bored voice called out to him. Mike looked around until he saw a slim, blonde woman, looking roughly in her thirties coming towards him with a stern, scrutinised look.

“Sir, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

“What? Why?” Mike asked, a little surprised. He hadn’t done anything, had he?

“Adults must be accompanied with a child to get a table.” She paused as she looked him up and down, almost like she was judging him for even existing.

“Oh, no, no. You don’t understand. I work here. I’m the Night Guard, my name’s Mike Schmidt.” He explained, hoping she would at least be a little friendlier, now that she knew he was part of the staff.

But that didn’t seem to be the case, as she sighed and held out her heavily manicured hand.

“Your ID, please?”

‘You’ve gotta be kidding me.’ Mike thought with a frown.

“Michael?” A new voice called out, “Michael Schmidt?”

A tall, rounded man with greying hair came up from behind her, his blue suit and red tie could be easily spotted from a mile off, even in this crowd.

“Mr…Mr. Hastings…!” Mike called back in a wavering voice, his lips upturned in a nervous grin.

Shit. Why was the manager out on the floor? He was usually holed up in his office during the day.

“It’s alright, Julie. He’s with us.” Hastings said with a dismissive wave to the woman, who simply shrugged and walked off, not really seeming to care all that much.

Mike swallowed as the older man turned back to him.

“What on earth are you doing here during daylight hours, son?” He asked before his smile turned into a sour frown, “You’re not quitting already, are you?”

“N-no sir…I was just passing by.” He answered as he gave a quick glance towards Pirate’s Cove. The curtains were shut, he wondered if Foxy was even active right now.

“Ah. Good.” Hastings let out a small sigh of relief, “We’ve lost too many guards already…”

‘Gee. I wonder why.’ Mike bitterly fought the urge to roll his eyes.

“Well, I best be moving along. The paperwork isn’t going to sort itself out, eh?”

Mike forced a fake smile, “Right.”

Mr. Hastings gave the guard a small nudge on the shoulder and motioned towards the stage, “The show’s about to start, you should stick around, Michael. Get a discount on the food while you’re at it too. Enjoy!” With that, his boss walked off.

Mike finally managed to drop the smile and sighed. He never really did like that man, there was always something…off about him.

His thoughts were interrupted as the lights suddenly dimmed down and the room went silent, all eyes turned to the show stage. A bright spotlight focused on the curtains and a booming voice called out through the surrounding speakers.

“Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls! Welcome to Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria! We hope you’re enjoying your pizza and are having tons of fun today!”

The speaker paused for a moment as if he were waiting for a huge uproar of cheers and such, but the only noise was that of a few children arguing over a toy, and their parent scolding them. After an excruciating prolonged silence, he continued.

“Now you’re all in for a special treat, because a certain bear wants to come out and meet you!”

Mike couldn’t help but flinch at that.

“Now, everybody give a big welcome to…”

An exaggerated drumroll sounded out and several coloured lights started swivelling around the room. Kids gasped in amazement while the parents chuckled in amusement. Mike could only raise an eyebrow.

“Freddy Fazbear and the gang!”

The curtains shot open and the spotlight focused on the restaurant’s famous mascot, while two more shone upon Bonnie and Chica, who were to the right and left of him. The dining room went into utter chaos again as children shouted, cheered, clapped and cried. Mike wasn’t exactly sure if they were ecstatic or terrified.

He was the latter.

Thankfully, the noise eventually died down and Freddy held up his microphone. His jaw lowered ever so slightly before a deep but gentle voice resonated from him.

“Hello there children and welcome to my pizzeria, the best in town! I do hope you’re all enjoying yourselves today?”

As he lowered his microphone to the audience, there was a chorus of “Yeah Freddy!” or “We sure are, Freddy!” The animatronic bear nodded in approval.

“My, my…we sure do have a lot of talented young people in here, don’t we Bonnie?”

The violet bunny turned his head to Freddy before jerkily nodding, “We sure do, Freddy! There’s a ton of great guys and gals and I can’t wait to play with you all! We’re all gonna have lots of fun!”

Bonnie’s voice had a slightly higher pitch and an almost gravelled tone to it. Guess it was to fit the whole ‘Rockstar’ personality he had to go along with the red guitar he carried.

“Of course, we are!” A feminine voice added, with a slight accent to it. Chica held up her cupcake prop and waved to the crowd, before adding, “And remember to eat plenty of pizza, after all, mine’s the best in the entire world!” She cheered.

“They sure are, Chica.” Freddy nodded, “Nobody would doubt that!”

For once, Mike had to agree. Those pizzas that she apparently cooked and left for him at the start of his shifts were pretty damn delicious.

“Now, how about we sing a song for these lovely ladies and gents? Would you like that, kids?” Freddy asked as he put a mechanical paw up to his ear and leaned forward, cheers and shouts answered him.

Bonnie readied his guitar prop and Chica held up her…cupcake, while Freddy raised his microphone.

“Alright gang. Hit it!”

The three animatronics broke out into a number of cheesy songs about friendship and pizza. Mike had to stifle a laugh at how stiff and jerky they were, it was a stark contrast compared to how swiftly they moved at night.

With the staff busy and his boss out of sight, this was his chance.

Mike slowly made his way to Pirate’s Cove, trying not to look too suspicious. All the while, he kept an eye on the animatronic band still playing on stage, half-expecting them to suddenly jump off the stage and charge straight for him.

Luckily, they didn’t seem to even notice him as they kept singing and entertaining the children. As Mike reached the out of bounds stage, he opened a slit in the curtains and slipped through. Though as soon as he did, he was hit with complete darkness.

Squinting, he started to make his way through the empty show area, cursing his stupid ideas.

‘Damn, it’s dark. And quiet. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.’

He turned around to go back, only…he couldn’t even see the way back, there was no light to guide him. Mike held out his hands, hoping to feel for the curtains or even a wall to guide him back to the dining area, but to no avail.

How big was Pirate’s Cove? Mike had only thought it was a mini show stage or something, but right now it just seemed like a never-ending black abyss. Panic was starting to set in now…

Finally, he came across something. It felt…soft, so it wasn’t a wall. But it was too solid to be the curtains.

‘Oh God.’ Mike thought as his eyes widened. ‘Please tell me he’s offline.’

“Arghh…who be there?” A soft but gruff voice asked.

The guard immediately jumped back as a single yellow eye shone through the darkness and looked directly at him. Mike had to hold up a hand to shield his own eyes against the blinding light.

“Uh…” He started, wondering if now would be a good time to start running, “It’s Mike…w-we talked last night…?”

The eye blinked for a moment, “The endo’ who’s not an endo’?”

“Right…”

Did Foxy not remember his name? It hadn’t even been 24 hours yet.

“Ye ain’t ever been in during the day before.” The animatronic replied. The eye gained height and there was a sound of metal scraping together, Mike presumed he must have been standing up.

“Well…guess I’ve never really had a reason to before.” Mike reluctantly answered, panicking when the eye seemed to be turning away, leaving him in complete darkness once again.

That didn’t last long though, as a click suddenly brought all the lights back to life, illuminating the room. Mike had trouble adjusting his eyes for a moment, but he did manage to see Foxy standing nearby, his metal finger hovering over a switch.

“So what be yer reason now then, eh?”

“I…well…”

His mind stopped working for a moment as he looked around the now lighted area in awe. He had no idea there was a whole pirate themed room behind the small show stage. There were foam pirate swords stashed in a box, balloon palm trees and treasure chests and even a large wooden ship smack bang in the middle, carved out so it could act as a play area for children.

It was a kid’s paradise.

Despite the space being neglected for what Mike presumed were years, it was still immaculate. Did that mean Foxy was doing the housekeeping? He doubted it was the cleaning staff, nobody was allowed back here after all.

“Damn…this place is huge…” Mike muttered.

Foxy tilted his head.

“Ye act like ye’ve never seen it before. Didn’t ye say ye came here when ye were a wee lad?”

Shit, he forgot about that.

“Yeah, yeah I have. It’s just….” The guard nervously smiled, “Never realised how big it really was, y’know?”

Thankfully, Foxy seemed to buy it.

“Well, it be this pirate’s lair. Though it was…really for the kiddies…”

The animatronic’s ears drooped slightly. Mike couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy, despite his unease.

“How’s it so clean? Do you have a hoover back there or something?” He joked, hoping to lighten the mood somewhat.

“I like ta do a bit o’ dustin’ every now and then, keep it tidy for the wee ones.” Foxy said, brushing off a stray bit of dust from a prop.

“So…wait…you still put on shows in here then?” Mike asked, a little confused. He could have sworn that this place was off limits to…well, anyone.

“…No.” The fox shifted slightly, looking a bit embarrassed, “They put me out of order, they did.” There was an obvious hint of bitterness in his mechanical voice, Mike couldn’t help but feel a bit more on edge.

“Ok…well…place looks great.” Mike decided to get back to his original plan, “I actually came here to ask for your help.”

“Oh? This be about ol’ Freddy, I suppose.” Foxy stated, giving the guard a look.

“…Yeah.” Mike said with a sheepish grin, “Look, I really don’t want to have to fend for my life anymore and if…we can convince the others that I’m human-“

“Ye don’t get stuffed.”

“-I won’t die.”

Foxy let out a garbled equivalent of a sigh, he looked unsure.

“Look, ye seem like a nice lad, but I don’t see why-“

“Please.” Mike interrupted, desperation taking over him now. Foxy looked at the human with slight surprise, before curiously studying him.

“…Why don’t ye jus’ leave this place? That would probably solve yer problem.” There was a hint of sarcasm in the animatronic’s voice.

“I uh…” He really didn’t know how to word this, “I just have to. It’s my job.”

There was a beat of silence as the fox seemed to mull it over.

“…Yer a strange one.” Foxy finally said.

God, even the robot thought he was stupid.

“I could try, mate. No promises they’ll listen though. They be a stubborn trio.” The animatronic said with a shrug before tending to another one of his props, turning his back completely to the guard.

Seemed as though this was the best he was going to get. At least he actually had a bit of a chance now, albeit a small one.

“Um…well…thank you.” Mike awkwardly said as he slowly backed off towards the curtains, “I’ll show myself out, yeah? S-see you tonight.”

He could feel himself start to get jittery, so he quickly turned and made his way back to the dining area.

As soon as he touched the purple curtains, a cold metal hand grabbed his arm and pull him back. It took absolutely everything in him not to scream like hell.

“What are you-?!” Mike was cut off as the hand let go of his arm to clamp around his mouth instead, a little too tightly for his liking.

“Jus’ wait a wee minute!” Foxy whispered as he pulled the young man back into Pirate’s Cove before finally letting go. Mike rubbed at his sore face, he was lucky his damn teeth didn’t break.

“The fuck is wrong with you?” Mike angrily asked, though he suddenly regretted it as he remembered he was speaking to a seven-foot robot who could easily kill him without a moment’s hesitation.

The animatronic looked down to the floor for a moment, almost in shame.

“S-sorry…I shouldn’t have grabbed ye like tha’…”

“It’s…It’s fine.” Mike nervously crossed his arms, “What’s suddenly so urgent?”

Foxy continued to look down at the floor before sheepishly fiddling with his hook.

“Ye wouldn’ mind…stayin’ for a while, would ye? Can’t remember the las’ time I interacted with a human. This ol’ fox be a bit…lonely sometimes.”

Mike blinked in surprise, he certainly wasn’t expecting…this.

Even when he was being hunted, he had noticed that Foxy just seemed so…isolated from the others. Mike could relate to that, somewhat.

Plus, if he got this machine to trust him. It would help him in the long run, especially with tonight.

“Well, I…” He smiled slightly, “Suppose it couldn’t hurt to stay for a little while.”

Foxy’s look of shame quickly turned into a joyful, toothy grin that looked all the more unnaturally wide due to the slackened jaw. Even with the lights on, it was still terrifying. But Mike managed to swallow back his fear and nervously grinned back.

“Great!” Foxy said, excitement in his tone, “But we should probably keep our voices down, eh? Don’t want anyone else comin’ in.”

Mike swallowed.

“Right.”

“Now how abou’ a story? I’ve got a ton memorised on me hard drive!”

Before Mike could even respond, the animatronic launched them into a tale about how he single-handedly took down the most feared pirate captain that ever sailed the Seven Seas; Blackbeard.

As Foxy rambled on, Mike decided to sit down on the floor cross-legged, after a while he couldn’t help but start to get engrossed in the stories. Foxy was certainly good at his job.

He almost felt like a kid again.

Looks like Foxy might have a new BFF eh? :p

Let me know what y’all think!

Buy me a coffee~

Chapter 1 - The Attack

Chapter 2 - The Misunderstanding

#five nights at freddy's #fnaf #fanfiction #mike schmidt #foxy the pirate #freddy fazbear #bonnie #chica

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